In Clarity First, author and business performance improvement expert Karen Martin asserts that a lack of clarity costs companies, educational institutions, government agencies, and nonprofits billions of dollars a year. Beyond the red ink, this lack of clarity also inserts unnecessary risk, creates organizational drag, and causes customers to question whether the organization can deliver value.

In this engaging workshop based on Clarity First, Karen shows how leaders and organizations can use clarity to unleash potential, innovate at higher levels, and solve problems more effectively.

Participants will:

Take an online assessment to learn the degree of clarity they and their organizations collectively operate with

Experience (via simulation) the real-world impact of lack of clarity at both organizational and personal levels

Explore the most common cultural obstacles to operating with clarity and learn how to mitigate them using Lean management practices

Experience how to use mindfulness and “clarity pauses” to perform at higher levels

About the Facilitator:

Karen Martin, president of the global consulting firm The Karen Martin Group, Inc., is a leading authority on business performance and Lean management. Known for her keen diagnostic skills and rapid-results approach, Karen and her team have worked with clients such as AT&T, Chevron, Epson, GlaxoSmithKline, International Monetary Fund, Lenovo, Mayo Clinic, Prudential Insurance, Qualcomm, and the United States Department of Homeland Security to develop more efficient work systems, grow market share, solve business problems, and accelerate performance.

An in-demand speaker, she’s the two-time Shingo Award winning author of The Outstanding Organization and coauthor of Value Stream Mapping, and coauthor of two other titles on business performance improvement. Her latest book, Clarity First, is her most provocative to date and is garnering deep praise.

*NOTE: This workshop is run in affiliation with the Lean Leadership Week, which includes the Lean People Development Summit and Lean Accounting/Management Summit. You are not required to attend the Summit to participate in this workshop. Simply select only the workshop, and not the Summit, when registering.

Colin Rusel

Colin Rusel

Session Abstract:

At ATC people are our biggest asset. As a company we have identified root causes to gaps that exist, implemented countermeasures, set goals and established metrics to measure to track our progress. However, all of this is dependent on the people at ATC. Our success depends on flexible, effective, capable leaders and teams. And we have gaps between capabilities of leaders and teams and work expectations we need them to meet. Growing leaders and teams is therefore where our people development energy has been directed in 2017. Come learn from the failures and successes we experienced this year. Bring your questions and join a conversation around how we all get better at what we are trying to do.

Learning Objectives:

In this session you will learn …

How the ATC Lifetime Employee Roadmap (LER) is changing the way we work with people.

How lean leader development works with the Lean Management System (LMS) at ATC.

How ATC is working to equip leaders so they can create flexible efficient teams that can sustain the gains we are making.

About the Facilitator:

Colin Rusel joined Aluminum Trailer Company (ATC) in 2015 in the then newly established role of Director of People Development. Since that time, he has been observing, learning and working with leaders and teams to identify gaps and build tools and systems that leaders, teams and individuals at ATC can use to get better at what we do. His work in 2017 is focused on ATC’s need to develop highly capable lean leaders.

Colin has a bachelor’s degree from Goshen College and lives with his wife and two sons in Goshen, IN.